Sound enthusiasts can today obtain recordings in media such as vinyl records, tapes and compact disc etc. The sound quality associated with compact disc recordings, however, has served to increase their popularity. As a result enthusiasts often have rather large collections thereof.
As with other sound media, the packaging containers used for storing and protecting compact discs typically provides art work on a major area surface thereof, and many enthusiasts find pleasure not only in listening to the sound recordings on their compact disks, but also in the viewing of said art work.
Continuing, as is the case with vinyl records, compact discs can be damaged if stored stacked one atop another with their major area surfaces oriented horizontally. As a result they are typically stored individually in packaging containers with their major area surfaces oriented vertically, and typically because of space constraints, side by side. As is the case with vinyl records and their associated packaging containers, this often provides that only a relatively small rectangular dimensioned edge of said packaging containers remain visible. Specific compact discs are often difficult to identify by observing only a small rectangular dimensioned edge of such a packaging container.
In answer to the above, inventors have provided display systems which serve to store compact discs therein with the major area, art work containing, surface of their packaging container oriented vertically and aesthetically faced so as to be visible to a user thereof, while said compact discs are being stored.
For example, a Patent to Zuzack, U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,564 describes a compact disc display rack with a number of shelves present thereon. Said shelves each provide a groove into which a lower rearward corner of a compact disc packaging container can rest, when said packaging container rests at an angle with an upper rearward corner of said compact disc packaging container resting against a forward surface of a back element of said compact disc display rack. The Zuzack invention also provides kick-bars or ribs in the back element of said compact disc display rack behind each compact disc packaging container, which serve to facilitate removal of a compact disc packaging container when a lower forward edge thereof is pushed rearward in the disc display rack by a user thereof. When so pushed, said compact disc packaging container is caused to effectively rotate around an associated kick-bar or rib with the upper forward edge thereof being caused to move forward from the rear of said compact disc display rack, where it can be grasped by a user thereof.
A Patent to Fitzpatrick, U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,680 describes a system which is similar to that in Zuzack, but which includes two support rods. Said support rods are similar to the kick-bars or ribs of Zuzack. Pressing on either the upper or lower forward edge of a compact disc packaging container stored in the Fitzpatrick system causes an action similar to that described with respect to the Zuzack system. That is a compact disc packaging container will rotate about one of said rods and make an edge of said compact disc packaging container available to be grasped by a user. The interconnection of a number of said systems is also disclosed.
The use of velcro to secure compact disc packaging containers to display racks or walls etc. is described in a Patent to Whittington, U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,687, and in Patents to Tompkins and Hunt, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,951,826 and 4,940,147 respectively. The Whittington Patent, in particular, also describes the presence of finger grooves placed to aid a user with opening the front of a compact disc packaging container mounted therein.
A Patent to Factor, U.S. Pat. No. 4,867,306 describes a compact disc rack assembly which has a series of pivotally mounted panels positioned on a stationary support. The panels have a plurality of spaced ledges with outer lips and the ledges are spaced from each other by a length which is less than the overall dimension of the container being housed, so that said container is stored at a slight angle to the panel and is gripped by the lips of the ledge holding the container.
Patents to Massaro and to Hopkins et al, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,573,749 and 4,350,252 respectively describe systems which secure record jackets or tapes via systems, the use of which requires that an upward insertion motion be followed by a dropping motion. That is a record jacket or tape is entered to such a system by causing an upper end thereof to be pushed upward into the upper extent of such a system, followed by pushing the lower end of said record jacket or tape rearward in said system, and then letting said lower end of said record jacket or tape drop so as to be secured at the a lower forward edge thereof by a system member.
Other Patents describe effectively three-dimensional display devices which allow display of record Jackets and audio cassettes etc. other than in a two dimensional plane. Such Patents include a Patent to Weston, U.S. Pat. No. 3,960,273, a Patent to Serrano, U.S. Pat. No. 4,232,790, a Patent to Hoy, U.S. Pat. No. 3,059 and a Patent to Rumble, U.S. Pat. No. 3,938,665.
The above sampling of Patents demonstrate that inventors have provided inventions aimed at providing means to conveniently store compact discs while simultaneously displaying art work present on major area surfaces of compact disk packaging containers. However, no known Patent teaches a system which is designed to specifically and optimally secure and store Jewel type compact disc packaging containers and the like, while aesthetically displaying art work present on a forward major area surface thereof. The present invention provides such a system.